Hercules, Greek Mythology, Story, God and
Facts

Hercules (or Heracles) is thought to be one of the greatest heroes
in Greek mythology. The name Heracles itself is significant since
it means "The Glory of Hera."
It is believed that Heracles was not the name of a god, but perhaps a
ritual name, deliberately adopted by a votary of the goddess or assigned
by sacerdotal tradition to a "consort" of the great goddess Argos.
Although there seems to be no definitive explanation of either the origin
or the genuine character of Hercules, it appears unlikely that he was
either a fallen god or a historic figure magnified to epic proportions.
The more likely possibility seems that the character of Hercules is the
result of a vast mythical synthesis that mingled and blended local legends
and sacerdotal traditions from Hera's sanctuary at Argos and pre-Hellenic
elements of every kind, perhaps from Syria, if as few claim Hercules was
similar to Melqart.

Facts

Even though the origins of Hercules are uncertain, some biographical
facts are known while others are surmised. Ancient mythologists claim
Hercules was not the real name of the hero; rather it was Alceides. They
further state that name of Hercules would have been bestowed on him by Apollo
when he became Hera's servant. Through his mother Alcmene and his father
Amphitryon, Hercules was descended from Persus, since his two
grandfathers, Alcaeus and Electryon, were both sons of Persus and
Andromeda. So he is of pure Argive blood, and it was by accident that he
was born at Thebes. Most of his adventures occurred in the Peloponnesus,
and his descendants returned and settled there much later on. Amphitryon
had to leave Thebes because of an accidental murder. Zeus
took advantage of his absence ((he being away on an expedition against the
Teleboans) and seduced Alcmene, but could do so only by disguising himself
as Amphitryon for one night, whereby fathering Hercules. In the morning
Amphitryon returned and the result of their union was Iphicles.

However, even before Hercules' birth Hera's jealousy was felt. Zeus had
unwisely stated that "the next child to be born a descendant of the
Perseidae would rule Argos." Hera then managed to retard the birth of
Hercules and to arrange that another descendant of Persus should be born
first; this was Eurystheus, who came only after seven months, and
qualified by the virtue of Zeus' sacred world for the title of king of
Argos and master of Hercules.

When Hercules was eight months old Hera sent two serpents to his room to
suffocate and choke him in his cradle. They found him lying with his twin
Iphicles. Hercules quickly seized the serpents by the throat and strangled
them.

Being as an ordinary Greek child, Linus, the musician, taught Hercules
the rudiments of music and the arts, but his pupil lacked self-control,
and one day, when his master was correcting him, Hercules struck him with
a stool and killed him. The child was sent into the country where he
became a shepherd. There he also became a skilled archer through the
teaching of Teutarus, the Scythia. When at eighteen, he stopped growing
and stood four cubits and one foot tall, he was first successful in the
face of danger as he killed a lion that was ravaging the countryside
around Mount Cithaeron. In reward for this the local king, Thespius, gave
him his fifty daughters, for he wanted grandsons by the hero. These fifty
sons of Hercules later colonized Sardinia.

On his return from hunting this lion, Hercules met the envoys of King
Erginus of Orchomenus, who were coming to claim the tribute paid to their
master by the Thebans. Hercules cut off the noses and ears of the members
of this embassy; then later, when Erginus marched against Thebes with his
army, he challenged him and imposed on him twice the tribute that Erginus
had previously demanded from Thebes.

Creon, the king of Thebes, then gave the hero the hand of his daughter,
Megara, who bore him five children, but Hera made Hercules go mad and he
killed all the children. This was Hera's way of reminding Hercules that he
was to begin serving Eurystheus. Hercules obeyed and the Herculean
Labors begun. These twelve exploits, performed at the order of
Eurystheus, were sometimes regarded as expiation for the murder of the
children born him by Megara. At this time Hercules either made or was
given his special weapons: he fashioned his club in the valley of Nemea
from the trunk of a wild olive; Hermes gave him a sword; and Apollo gave
him a bow and arrows. According to other traditions he received everything
from his protectress Athena.

The Nemean lion: The first Herculean labor was to hunt the Nemean
Lion, a prodigious animal, son of Orthrus and brother to the Sphinx of
Thebes. The lion dwelled in a double-mouthed cave; Hercules blocked off
one entrance of the cave and then wrestled the beast until he choked it to
death. When the lion was dead, Hercules used the animal's own paws to
remove the pelt, which became his armor, and its head served as his
helmet.

The hydra of Lerna: The second labor was the destruction of the
Hydra of Lerna, the daughter of Echidna and Typhon, who had been reared by
Hera herself. The hydra was a hundred-headed serpent whose breath was so
venomous that it could destroy life. When Hercules cut off the hideous
heads they immediately grew back again, so he commanded his nephew Iolaus,
who was with him, to seal each wound with a flaming brand. Then he dipped
his arrows into Hydra's blood to make them poisonous.

The boar of Erymanthus: On Mount Erymanthus lived a monstrous
boar, which Hercules forced to come out of its liar, and when it did he
pushed it into a deep snow that covered the entire countryside. Then, when
the animal was tired, he captured it and carried it alive to Eurystheus,
who was so afraid that he took refuge in a sunken jar.

The hind of Ceryneia: At Oenoe, near the Hill of Ceryneia, a
gigantic hind as destroying crops; she was sacred to Artemis, and it was a
sacrilege to touch her. Hercules hunted for one entire year, when finding
her he wounded her slightly with his arrow and carried her across his
shoulders. As he crossed Arcadia he met Artemis
and Apollo,
who wanted the hind back and accused him of intending to kill a sacred
animal. But Hercules extricated himself by saying the affair was the
responsibility of Eurystheus, for he was only acting on the king's
commands.

The birds of Stymphalus: In the region of lake Stymphalus in
Arcadia a dense forest sheltered countless birds, which had originally
flocked there when frightened by wolves. They had begun to devour all the
fruit and even attacked passers-by. Eurystheus ordered Hercules to destroy
these birds. He could not get them to leave the forest until he had
recourse to bronze castanets given to him by Athena, which were made by
Hephaetus. When hearing the castanets the birds took flight, thus allowing
Hercules to kill them with his arrows.

According to another version the birds were vultures that devoured men,
and they used their steel feathers to pierce their victims.

The stables of Augeias: At Elis in the Peleponnesus there was a
king called Augeias, who was a son of the Sun. He inherited a great
fortune of flocks and herds from his father, but he never removed the dung
from his stables, which eventually spread and made the country sterile.
Hercules was given the task of cleaning these stables. First he made the
king promise that he would pay him a certain sum if he did it in one day.
Hercules succeeded by dint of diverting two rivers, Alpheius and Peneius,
through the palace yard. However, Augeias refused to pay the certain sum
and banished Hercules.

The Cretan bull: This, the seventh labor, took place in Crete
where a monstrous bull was running wild. Its nature was uncertain, perhaps
Zeus had disguised himself when he abducted Europa; perhaps it was the
animal who Pasiphae had fallen in love with; or, perhaps it was a present
from Poseidon that Minos had kept in his herd instead of sacrificing it to
the god as agreed. However, the bull had to be brought back alive to
Eurystheus. Hercules went to Crete and obtained permission from Minos to
capture the bull on the run. Then he brought it back to Greece (some say
he swam with it) where he presented it to his master. Eurystheus then
offered it to Hera, but the goddess refused to accept it as a gift and set
it free. This was the bull that Theseus had to later conquer on the plain
of Marathon as a task set for him by Medusa.

The horses of Diomedes: Diomedes, the king of Thrace and son of Ares,
possessed four mares that fed on human flesh. Hercules went to Thrace and
set Diomedes himself before the mares, and they devoured him.

The girdle of the Amazon: Eurystheus had a daughter, Admete, who
wanted the girdle of Hippolyta, the queen of the Amazons. Ares himself had
given this girdle to the queen. Hercules set off with some companions for
the Amazons. Hippolyta willingly agreed to give him her girdle, but Hera
provoked a quarrel between the Amazons and Hercules' followers. A battle
erupted, Hercules, thinking Hippolyta had betrayed him, killed her.

The cattle of Geryon: The final three labors took Hercules far
from the known world. Eurystheus sent him to seek the cattle of Geryon,
the son of Chrysaor. The herdsman Eurytion and his dog Orthrus guarded the
cattle on the island of Eurytheia. This island lay in the far west, beyond
Oceanus. To cross the ocean, Hercules barrowed the "goblet of the Sun," in
which the solar star sailed back to his palace every evening on the other
side of the world. Hercules had to threaten the Sun with his arrows before
he was offered the loan of the goblet. In the same way he had to
intimidate Oceanus to avoid being pitched about violently by the waves
during the crossing. Finally he reached the sacred island, where he struck
Orthrus, the "sheep-dog," with his club and killed him. In the end Geryon,
the cattle owner himself, came to the aid of his men and was slain in
similar fashion. Then Hercules returned as he had come, disembarking at
Tartarus Tartessus. There he set up two pillars, which marked the edge of
Oceanus (the "Pillars of Oceanus," which are currently called the Rock of
Gibraltar and Cape Ceuta). Then he set out on a long journey through Spain
and Gaul on his way back to Greece. He was attacked on the way by
innumerable brigands, particularly in the region of Liguria, in the plain
of Crau, where he stoned his enemies with bolders given to him by Zeus,
and which even today bestrew the countryside. At Rome he had to fight
Cacus, the brigand of Aventine Forest. When finally reaching Argos, he
offered the rest of Geryon's herd as sacrifice to Hera.

The dog Cerberus:
The eleventh labor took Hercules to the underworld to seek the
three-headed dog Cerberus. Before his departure he was initiated into the
Mysteries
of Eleusis, so to know how to reach the kingdom of Hades,
and more important to know how to get back.

Hercules went through the "jaws of Hell," which lay off Cape Taenarum. A
few spirits of the dead tried to block his way, notably the Gorgon Medusa,
but the hero surmounted the obstacles, and presented himself to Hades. The
latter agreed to let him have Cerberus if he could master him with his own
hands. This Hercules did. Whereupon he returned with his prisoner to
Eurystheus, who in fear and trembling had taken refuge in his sunken jar.
Hercules, not knowing what to do with the dog, took it back to Hades.

The apples of the Hesperides: As the final labor, Eurystheus
demanded "golden apples" from the garden of the Hesperides. The
Hesperides, whose name means "the nymphs the evening," had set a
hundred-headed dragon to watch over their garden; it was the offspring of
Echidne and Typhon. Hercules set off. As he crossed Macedonia he met
Cycnus, son of Ares, and killed him. Then he went through Illyria and
reached the mouth of the Eridanus (the Po), where nymphs told him that the
only creature who knew the way he must take was the sea-god Nereus. He
gained access to Nereus, took him prisoner, put him in chains and forced
him to speak.

From that point on Hercules' itinerary becomes about impossible to
follow. He went to Liberia, where he had to combat the giant, Anteus, the
son of Earth, who renewed his strength every time he touched the ground.
Hercules could only defeat him by raising him in his arms. Then he crossed
Egypt, where he killed King Busiris, who offered all strangers in
sacrifice to the gods; then he was to be found in Arabia, where he killed
Emathion, son of Tithonus. Reaching the Red Sea, he embarked again in the
"goblet of the Sun" and came to the Caucasian Mountains, where he freed Prometheus
by killing the eagle that gnawed away perpetually at its victim's liver.
In gratitude Prometheus helped him by divulging that he would not be able
to pick the marvelous apples himself, but would need to get Atlas to pick
them for him. So he went to find Atlas, who had the task of holding the
sky on his shoulders, and he offered to take his place while he went to
pick the desired fruit. Atlas acquiesced, brought back the apples and then
declared that he would go and give them to Eurystheus himself. Hercules
pretended to agree, but simply asked Atlas to slip a cushion on his
shoulder. The latter did so without suspecting a trick, but while holding
the sky Hercules escaped with the apples, leaving Atlas with his burden.

When Eurystheus was given the marvelous apples he offered them in
sacrifice to Athena, who asked Hercules to return them, for Fate had
decreed that they should not be found anywhere else on earth.

There are varied descriptions of the many other adventures and
expeditions that Hercules participated in. In one military expedition he
fought against Troy. He had saved Hesione, the daughter of King Laomedon,
and for this the king had promised Hercules some sacred mares, a promise
that the king did not fulfill. Hercules rescued the daughter when
returning from his war with the Amazons. Later Hercules returned with a
fleet of eighteen ships; and attacked the city. Telamon, one of Hercules
most faithful companions, scaled the wall and was first in the city.
Laomedon and all of his children, except the youngest, were killed; and
Hesione later married Telamon.

How did Hercules die

According to legend the death of Hercules was predestined by previous
events in his life. On his earlier visit to the underworld Hercules met
his friend Meleager, who asked him to marry his sister Delaneira, when he
returned to earth. Hercules agreed and won the girl's hand after fighting
the river-god, Achelous, who also wanted to marry her. After the marriage
Hercules remained with his father-in-law, King Oeneus, for some time at
Calydon. But while there he accidentally killed a young relative of the
king and thought best to go into exile. So he set off with Delaneira and
their son Hyllus. A centaur named Nessus took travelers across the river
Evenus. Hercules crossed first. When Nessus had Delaneira in his boat
alone he attempted to violate her. She cried for help and Hercules killed
the centaur with an arrow. In his dying moments Nessus advised Delaneira
to soak a piece of cloth in his blood and make a tunic with it; and if her
husband ever ceased to love her, she was to dress him in this garment.

Some writers have been inclined to portray Hercules as an attendant of
Omphale, waiting on her, exchanging costume with her, and spinning at her
feet, which are echoes perhaps some Lydian myth in which a goddess was
waited upon by an effeminate consort. This enslavement lasted three years.
However, on his return Hercules, who had asked for the hand of Iola, the
youngest daughter of Eurytus, made her his concubine. Then Delaneira
remembered the love-charm that Nessus had given her and decided to make
use of it.

Immediately after returning from his victory over Eurytus Hercules wanted
to consecrate an altar to Zeus, and for this purpose sent to Delaneira
asking for a garment. She sent him the tunic impregnated with the blood of
Nessus. When Hercules put it on the poisoned blood burnt him unbearably.
He tried tearing it off but injured himself even more because it was so
firmly stuck to his skin. Then he was taken to Delaneira at Trachis. Upon
seeing what she had done, she committed suicide.

Hercules entrusted Iola to his son Hyllus, asking him to marry her. Then
he went upon Mount Oeta, having built a high pyre and mounted it. He
commanded his servants to set it afire, but all refused except
Philoctetes, who resigned himself to the task and was given Hercules' bow
and arrows as a reward. The pyre was still burning when a thunderclap was
heard, and the hero, freed of his mortal self, was taken up into the sky.
He became reconciled with Hera when reaching Olympus.
A ceremony was enacted portraying his birth (that is, his emergence from
the bosom of the goddess) and he married Hebe,
the personification of youth.

Being worshipped from about 800 BC to the Christian era, around 400 AD,
Hercules became the god ancestor of the Dorian kings. Alexander the Great
incorporated his image in his coinage. In one legend Deianeira contrived
Hercules' death in a fit of jealous pique with a rope tainted with the
poison blood of a centaur, ironically from one of Hercules' own arrows,
which inflicted such torture upon him that he committed suicide by
self-immolation on Mount Oita, near Trachis. In various locations he
enjoyed many cult centers, with the notable exception of Crete. At the
major sanctuaries on Thasos and Mount Oita, every fourth year, the death
of this god was marked by a sacrificial fire festival. These rites often
became huge feasts. Similar festivals were held for the god Sandon. In
Roman Hercules became Hercules. In the fifth century BC, Pindar called
Hercules heros theos, "heroes god." Later, without hesitation, the
Romans adopted Hercules as the god of physical strength. A.G.H.